Arianespace has successfully launched two Earth observation satellites on 1 August. This is the seventh Earth observation launch for the rocket, the eighth launch by Arianespace in 2017 and the ninth mission for the lightweight Vega launch vehicle. The payloads were two Earth observation satellites meant for civil and military use. Venµs stands for Vegetation and Environment monitoring on a New MicroSatellite and is a collaboration between the Israel Space Agency and the French Space Agency.
Image Credit: Arianespace
The satellite will be used for monitoring the growth of vegetation on Earth, allowing scientists to judge the impact of human activity and climate on the Earth's land surfaces. After performing its scientific objectives, Venµs also has a technological objective. The Venµs will test thrusters to delay the orbital decay of a satellite, at a lower orbit.
The OPTSAT-3000 is meant for high resolution imaging of the surface of the Earth for defence purposes. Venµs has a liftoff mass of 264 kg, and the OPTSAT-3000 has a liftoff mass of 368 kg. Both the satellites have been built by Israel Aerospace Industries, and both the satellites will be delivered to sun synchronous orbits.
The previous launch for Arianespace was deploying ISRO's GSAT-17. The GSAT-17 has a liftoff mass of 3,425 kg, with a power generation capacity of 6 KW. The commercial transponders on the satellite are in the Ku band, the C band and the extended C band. There is also a dedicated Search and Rescue (SAR) transponder for use in emergency situations. Sharing the ride with the GSAT-17 is the Hellas Sat 3-Inmarsat SEAN by Thales.
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